1.3.11

BJJ tips: How to Escape from Mount & Smiling On the Mat

BJJ / grappling is nothing if not training alive. What that means in detail is a whole big subject but in short: it has to work against an opponent who's resisting your actions. Aliveness is only part of what makes a BJJ gym what it is, but it is by far the most vital part. Just like you can't make an omelette without eggs, you can't have Brazilian Jiu Jitsu without aliveness.

One of the greatest joys of teaching BJJ fundamentals is when someone uses a technique you just showed them (especially against you) in live competitive sparring. Yesterday's session theme was mount escapes where we covered the elbow knee escape and the upa - bridge - escape. One particular version of the elbow knee escape was against an opponent transitioning from side control to the mount and one our white belts pulled it off against me beautifully when we rolled in the second session. It honestly made me smile like some goofy idiot. I’ve never been happier to get trapped in half guard.

And here is a video of me rolling (ha! if you want to call it that!) with the awesome Mr David Onuma from his seminar at the Labs where I pull off that particular escape at 1:31. Eddie, thank you kindly and I hope this brings a smile to your face too.